Many traditional anti-foam agents in laundry detergents will defoam at the beginning of the wash cycle, so there is no foam at the beginning of the cycle. This is not desirable because consumers assume that the detergent is not performing properly. Preferably, foam is produced at the beginning of the wash cycle, and then reduced throughout the remainder of the wash cycle. By reducing the amount of foam, the detergent is more effective at cleaning and removing stains. Often, though, at the end of the wash cycle, the anti-foam agent has been exhausted, and there is no anti-foam agent remaining to defoam during the rinse cycle.
Anti-foam agents in laundry detergents have been manufactured using various carrier systems. A carrier comprising pre-gelatinised hydrophilic starch (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,818,292), a modified cellulose (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,177), and encapsulants have been used. The encapsulants include the reaction product of an alkylalkoxysilane and a silicone condensation cure catalyst (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,773,407). Despite these formulations however, there remains a continuing interest in the development of even further improvements to anti-foam agents for laundry detergents and other applications. It would be particularly beneficial to obtain an anti-foam agent that does not completely defoam at the beginning of the wash cycle, and which also does not exhaust its defoaming capability over the course of the wash cycle.